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Workgroups

Key partners, identified by the Rise Together Blueprint Steering Committee, worked directly on four key areas which impact poverty and racial inequity:

  • Jobs
  • Housing
  • Health
  • Youth

The workgroups developed lists of action steps to address the four components contributing to poverty, based on input captured from stakeholder engagement – the voices of Franklin County residents.


Stakeholder engagement included more than 200 individuals who participated in focus groups and interviews with county staff. In particular, 21 separate group discussions were conducted with individuals who are currently living in poverty. To learn more about the voices and stories of residents, click on the link below. 

Rise Together Blueprint

Submission Form

To learn more and/or join in our efforts to reduce poverty through a workgroup or the Rise Together Innovation Center, we invite you to complete the submission form and upload your resume or letter of interest detailing your expertise in one or more of the workgroup components.

We want to hear from you. Please indicate if your ideas and/or feedback is for the Innovation Center or one of the four Workgroups.

The Rise Together Innovation Center

The Rise Together Innovation Center will provide a community anchor for coordinating short and long-term efforts and the ongoing work of the blueprint to mitigate poverty and foster equitable access to opportunity across Franklin County. The Innovation Center staff will be responsible for the day-to-day work of convening partners and aligning systems to implement the blueprint. The staff will also carry out the 13 “Goals for the Franklin County Community” noted in the Rise Together Blueprint, all associated action steps from the Steering Committee, and the big ideas vetted through the Board of Trustees.
 
The Innovation Center appointed the board, which consists of leaders and residents from throughout the community, to oversee it. Members of the Rise Together Innovation Center Board of Trustees include:
  • Sandy Doyle Ahern, EMH&T
  • Trudy Bartley (Co-chair), The Ohio State University
  • Michael Corey, Franklin County Human Service Chamber
  • Dr. Talisa Dixon, Columbus City Schools
  • Terry Green, Think Make Live Youth
  • Matt Habash (Co-Chair), Mid-Ohio Foodbank
  • Dr. David Harrison, Columbus State Community College
  • Joanna Pinkerton, COTA
  • Charleta Tavares, PrimaryOne Health
  • Dr. Keith Troy, Pastor, New Salem Missionary Baptist Church
  • Guadalupe Velasquez, Welcoming City               
  • Carla Williams-Scott, City of Columbus Department of Neighborhoods
  • Nana Watson, NAACP
 
We want to hear from you. To offer ideas or feedback pertaining to the Innovation Center or workgroups, please complete the submissions form located on the Workgroups tab.